German lawmaker warns China against invasion of Taiwan | Taiwan News

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Bundestag member Marcus Faber on Friday (Nov. 18) was cited by German media as saying that his country’s message to China must be that it would be incredibly expensive to attack Taiwan.

Marcus, the chair of the German-Taiwanese Association, and Dr. Holger Becker, a fellow Bundestag member, paid an official visit in Taiwan from Nov. 17-18. The trip was on the heels of visits by a delegation from the Germany-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group and another from the Bundestag’s Committee on Human Rights and Humanitarian Aid last month, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).

During the visit, they attended a banquet hosted by Deputy Foreign Minister Tien Chung-kwang (田中光) and went to several key government facilities, ministries, and think tanks for exchanges and updates on Taiwan’s security policy and threats from China. MOFA quoted Faber as saying that democracies can learn lessons from the Russo-Ukrainian War, and that Germany can help Taiwan to confront China’s threat.

Becker (left), Tien and Faber. (Facebook, Marcus Faber photo)

Faber, in an interview with WELT, stated that Taiwan’s security situation has changed significantly since his last visit four years back. He said that although Russian losses in Ukraine may give China pause, his sources have expressed to him concern that Chinese Chairman Xi Jinping (習近平) has surrounded himself with followers who “do not teach him about reality and that he might be inclined to make wrong assumptions,” and that this is a common trait with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Faber answered a question about how Germany can stop Chinese aggression by saying that, as Germans, they can’t contribute militarily to the region. The key to getting the attention of Beijing will be economic measures in coordination and coordination with European partners. Faber stated that the message must include: “do NOT do it, do no invade, do nothing to attack, it will be extremely costly economically for you.”

Monday 21 November saw the Taiwan representative office in the U.K. upload a Facebook post thanksing Becker and Faber for visiting Taiwan. It also uploaded an image with Welt’s quote by Faber about the high economic price China would pay for Taiwan’s invasion.